Peninsula tops survey for 2nd straight year

United wins for 'Best Premium Economy Class in the World'

(Crain's) -- For the second year in a row, Peninsula Chicago is rated the best individual hotel in North America for business travel in the 18th annual reader survey by Business Traveler magazine.

United Airlines placed first in the category of "Best Premium Economy Class in the World" for its extra legroom available in certain coach seats, the magazine said Monday. But the top honor for best airline for North American travel, which United won last year, went to Continental Airlines.

Star Alliance, an international network of carriers that includes United, won the top honor for "Best Airline Alliance."

The awards, based on a random sampling of the magazine's subscribers, will be presented in New York in January. The survey is conducted by an outside research firm and had a response rate of 33%, the magazine said.

In its most recent financial report, the hotel holding company said the Peninsula Chicago's year-to-date average room rate was up 17% in the first half of 2006 compared with the same period last year. The hotel's occupancy rate was unchanged at 65%, the second-lowest of the firm's eight hotels in the U.S. and Asia.

But the hotel has the highest revenue per available room, a function of room rate and occupancy, of any hotel in "its competitive set," according to the firm's financial statement. Peninsula Chicago's rooms start at $490 a night and suites start at $695, according to the hotel's Web site.

Zagat Survey recently rated the Peninsula Chicago the top hotel in the U.S. with 100 rooms or more.

Spokespersons for Peninsula Chicago and United were not immediately available for comment.

Business Traveler said its readers average 67 nights on the road and more than 6 million roundtrip flights a year.